Hester reports to camp, but doesn’t practice

Devin Hester came back, but might not stay back. The Bears All-Pro kick returner ended a two-day contract holdout but did not practice on Chicago’s third day of training camp Friday.

Matt Trowbridge

Devin Hester came back, but might not stay back.

The Bears All-Pro kick returner ended a two-day contract holdout but did not practice on Chicago’s third day of training camp Friday. Asked if he would return to practice without a new contract, Hester replied: “I will have no comment on that.”

Hester has two years remaining on his original four-year rookie deal, which will pay him $445,000 this year. Coach Lovie Smith spoke before Hester. When asked if Hester had signed a contract, Smith replied: “What do you mean, has he signed? He has a contract.”

The coach stuck with that answer even after he was told of Hester’s “no comment” on practicing without a new deal.

“He has a contract and he’s here, that’s my answer to it,” Smith said. “When he’s ready to go, I assume he will be out there ready to go. I’m going back to my same comments. Nothing has changed in 10 minutes.”

Maybe something has changed, or at least begun to change, in two days. Hester said he returned because his contract talks were “progressing” with general manager Jerry Angelo.

“It’s looking good, so I came back,” Hester said. “I talked to Jerry and Coach Lovie, and it seemed like they’re trying to work it out in the right order, so I’m showing up.”

Or maybe he showed up because nothing has changed. Angelo has been steadfast in saying the Bears will not renegotiate with a player who is not in camp.

“Like Jerry said, they don’t do a player that’s not here,” Hester said. “We’re in the process of getting it done. I hope to get it done sometime this week, and hopefully you will see me out here.”

Again, Hester made his presence sound tied to a new contract. And Angelo has called that contract the most difficult one he’s ever had to do because Hester is also being counted on to become Chicago’s No. 1 receiver. He wants to be paid as such, yet he’s unproven as a receiver, with 20 career catches.

That’s why the Bears want him practicing as soon as possible.

“He needs to be here, needs to get to work and we need him to be here,” offensive coordinator Ron Turner said.

No one was worried about what Hester has missed so far.

“He needs to practice, but I don’t think those two days are going to hurt him much,” quarterback Kyle Orton said. “There’s plenty of time, and he’s put in the work in the offseason, learning the playbook, working with the quarterbacks and trying to refine his route running.”

If he does polish his receiving skills, Hester could become one of the league’s most dangerous receivers. He leads all Bears with 14 touchdowns the last two years, but 12 were returning kicks.

“There’s a difference between being a great athlete and a great receiver,” Orton said. “He’s really put the work into his route running. He has to run sharp routes and we need to know where he’s going to be. He’s put the work in. I really do think he’s going to be there.”

Well, Hester is in training camp. That’s a start. The next step is keeping him there.